27/06/2025 - From 27 June-5 July, Fema will show more than 200 movies in the presence of myriad directors, and will pay tribute to Pedro Almodóvar and Christian Petzold

Presided over by Sylvie Pialat and managed by artistic director Sophie Mirouze, the La Rochelle Film Festival (Fema) is keeping its original editorial policy focused on its strictly non-competitive identity, a first-rate, eclectic programme and a festive, mainstream spirit for its 53rd edition (27 June-5 July), which will be opened tonight in a joyous and playfully cinephilic atmosphere by Rebecca Zlotowski’s A Private Life [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (first unveiled at Cannes).

Standing out in the showcase of tributes are Spanish maestro Pedro Almodóvar (with a total of 18 features on the menu) and his German counterpart Christian Petzold (who will attend a public discussion on 3 July), with seven movies, including his most recent opus, Mirrors No. 3 [+see also:
film review
interview: Christian Petzold
film profile] (unveiled in the Directors’ Fortnight).

Among the retrospectives are those dedicated to Claude Chabrol (12 films), Edward Yang (seven), Jacques Demy (four) and Barbara Stanwyck (nine).

Shining bright among the 30 firm favourites from the past year screening in the Ici et Ailleurs (“Here and Elsewhere”) section (in the presence of 20 of the filmmakers) are 14 other movies that were shown on the Croisette in May, including the Palme d’Or winner, It Was Just an Accident [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Jafar Panahi, the award winners The Secret Agent [+see also:
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trailer
film profile] by Kleber Mendonça Filho, Sirât [+see also:
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trailer
interview: Óliver Laxe
film profile] by Oliver Laxe, Sentimental Value [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Joachim Trier
film profile] by Joachim Trier and The Little Sister [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Hafsia Herzi
film profile] by Hafsia Herzi, as well as the competition entry Case 137 [+see also:
film review
interview: Dominik Moll
film profile] by Dominik Moll, not to mention the Caméra d’Or winner The President’s Cake by Hasan Hadi, Yes [+see also:
film review
film profile] by Nadav Lapid, I Only Rest in the Storm [+see also:
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interview: Pedro Pinho
film profile] by Pedro Pinho, Love Me Tender [+see also:
film review
interview: Anna Cazenave Cambet
film profile] by Anna Cazenave Cambet, Adam’s Sake [+see also:
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trailer
interview: Laura Wandel
film profile] by Laura Wandel, Kika [+see also:
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trailer
interview: Alexe Poukine
film profile] by Alexe Poukine, Baise-en-ville [+see also:
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film profile] by Martin Jauvat and Peak Everything by Anne Emond.

This mouth-watering “best of” selection is joined by movies that turned heads at Berlin (Kontinental ’25 [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Radu Jude, We Believe You [+see also:
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trailer
interview: Arnaud Dufeys and Charlotte…
film profile] by Charlotte Devillers and Arnaud Dufeys, Little Trouble Girls [+see also:
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trailer
film profile] by Urška Djukić, Confidante [+see also:
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interview: Cağla Zencirci & Guillaume …
film profile] by Çağla Zencirci and Guillaume Giovanetti, The Incredible Snow Woman [+see also:
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trailer
interview: Sébastien Betbeder
film profile] by Sébastien Betbeder), at Sundance (Sukkwan Island [+see also:
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film profile] by Vladimir de Fontenay), at IFFR (Perla [+see also:
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trailer
interview: Alexandra Makarová
film profile] by Alexandra Makarová), and at Toronto and San Sebastián (On Falling [+see also:
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trailer
interview: Laura Carreira
film profile] by Laura Carreira, Under the Volcano [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Damian Kocur
film profile] by Damian Kocur).

The rich menu also includes a day dedicated to Jodie Foster (appearing in five films), a Du côté de la Palestine (“On Palestine’s Side”) programme (comprising seven features and two short films), the 15 flicks in the Au cœur du Doc (“At the Heart of the Doc”) section (including the world premieres of the features Les cahiers Adjani by Cyril Brody and Souvent l’hiver se mutine by Benoît Perraud, alongside titles such as Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk by Sepideh Farsi, Rashid, the Boy from Sinjar by Jasna Krajinovic, My Armenian Phantoms by Tamara Stepanyan, and New Beginnings by Isabelle Ingold and Vivianne Perelmuter) and the D’hier à Aujourd’hui (“From Yesterday to Today”) section of classics.

Lastly, it’s worth mentioning that animation will also be in the limelight, particularly via a focus on Michel Ocelot (seven films), and the features Death Does Not Exist [+see also:
film review
interview: Félix Dufour-Laperrière
film profile] by Félix Dufour-Laperrière, The Songbird’s Secret [+see also:
film review
film profile] by Antoine Lanciaux and Olivia and the Invisible Earthquake [+see also:
interview: Irene Iborra
film profile] by Irene Iborra.

(Translated from French)